


Shelter at Home

by flowerfan



Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: 10.22 coda, But could be pre-slash, COVID-19, Coronavirus, Follows 10.22, Light Angst, Love, M/M, Separation, Worry, could be canon-compliant, implied established relationship, social distancing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-18
Updated: 2020-04-18
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:48:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,136
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23717692
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flowerfan/pseuds/flowerfan
Summary: Danny’s coping with the pandemic as best he can in Steve’s absence.
Relationships: Steve McGarrett/Danny "Danno" Williams
Comments: 16
Kudos: 139





	Shelter at Home

Danny sits down in his chair and stares out at the water for a few minutes, trying to let the sound of the gentle waves soothe him. The ocean doesn’t give a shit about COVID-19.

At eight o’clock he clicks on a zoom link. After a few seconds, Grace’s face shows up on the screen, and he can’t help but smile.

“Hey, monkey, how’s it going?”

Grace grins at him and waves, the motion not quite fluid on the screen. “Hi Danno!”

Sunday nights are family zoom calls, with Grace and Charlie, his folks, and various other members of the Williams clan. Rachel even says hi from over Charlie’s shoulder sometimes. But Wednesday nights are just for him and Grace.

“What’s new in wine country this week?” When things started to lock down, Grace had begged to wait out the quarantine with her college roommate’s family in northern California. Given the whole cruise ship debacle, and the paranoia Danny continued to feel about being trapped on an island during a global catastrophe, he had reluctantly agreed.

It didn’t hurt that Grace’s roommate Marisa was one of four good-natured kids and lived on a sprawling ranch with lots of land. Her mom was a retired physician, and her dad was laying down the law when it came to quarantining. Gracie was relatively safe and happy, and there always seemed to be enough to do to keep Grace occupied even when she wasn’t finishing her spring semester classes (remotely, of course).

“Not much. I texted you about my internship, right?”

“Yeah, I’m sorry, Gracie.” Grace had landed a neat summer job with an environmental law organization, but they were cancelling all their summer programs due to the pandemic.

“It’s all right. I wasn’t really surprised.”

Still, it’s just one more little disappointment on top of everything else. He wishes he could make this easier for her. “What are you and Marisa up to?”

“Well, we’re still doing that yoga class every morning with her mom. And Marisa and I played cards last night with her boyfriend and his brother, it was pretty fun.”

“You did what?” Danny asks, eyebrows raised.

“Online, dad, with an app. I sent you the link last week. I’m not an idiot.”

“Okay, okay. Marisa isn’t still thinking about going to see that kid, is she?” Marisa’s boyfriend lives in L.A., and she has been getting increasing antsy about being apart from him, according to Grace.

“No, her parents won’t let her. I still think it would be okay, his family is being pretty strict about quarantine too-”

“Grace, absolutely not-”

“I know, dad, I know.”

Danny pushes down the wave of panic he feels at the thought of Grace taking a road trip right now, stopping in gas stations and diners filled with people, the virus lurking on everything she might touch. Even if Grace stayed at Marisa’s place, Marisa would eventually want to return, bringing all that exposure back in contact with his daughter. He knows Grace has a good head on her shoulders, and so far has agreed to not go anywhere without his permission, but he’s an ocean away from her and there’s only so much he can do.

“Grace, promise me-”

“Dad,” Grace says. “Stop worrying. I’m fine.” She takes a deep breath and resettles herself on her bed, her laptop jostling as she moves around. “So, what’s up with you guys?”

“Not much,” Danny responds automatically, and Grace frowns. He knows it’s not fair to think she isn’t worried too, especially since Danny can’t exactly shelter at home. He and the rest of Five-0 are hard at work, going out every day wherever they are needed. Luckily Oahu hasn’t been hit as hard as some places, but there are still a significant number of people with the virus, including members of HPD. Five-0 is taking its turn helping to enforce social distancing in public areas, and although the streets are fairly quiet, people are always finding new, inventive ways to get into trouble.

“You’re wearing masks, right?”

Danny has his doubts about the usefulness of this practice, especially since the ones they have been issued don’t fit particularly well, but he has been wearing a mask, and he makes the rest of the team wear them too. If nothing else, it sets a good example. “Of course, monkey.”

“Do you guys have enough? I saw on the news that not all police departments are getting the PPE they need.”

“We’re good,” Danny replies, although it’s not exactly true. He doesn’t want to lie to Grace, but neither is he going to tell her every little detail that keeps him up at night. First responders are always in danger, cops are always in danger, Five-0 is always, always in danger. The current craziness just adds another layer to it.

He changes the subject to food, making her guess what he had for lunch. People have been dropping off food at the palace, restaurants and others donating meals to those on the front lines, and Five-0 gets its fair share. It’s an amusing enough topic for Grace, and it keeps them occupied for a few more minutes.

“How is Leonard’s even open?” Grace asks. “With social distancing, their lines would stretch for blocks. And can someone send me some malasadas?”

“They’re taking phone orders, apparently,” Danny says. “And no, they don’t do mail order malasadas. We’ve been over this before.”

“Whatever,” Grace says, grinning as she lets out a long sigh. The conversation lulls, and Danny’s stomach tightens. He knows what’s coming.

“Danno? Is Uncle Steve back yet?”

Danny takes a deep breath, forcing a smile onto his face. “Not yet. But he’s looking out for himself, don’t worry.” 

“Are you sure? Why won’t he just come home?”

Danny has asked himself this so many times the words have lost their meaning. “He’ll come home when he’s ready, Grace.”

Steve has been walkabout for a few months now. The house feels emptier every day, no longer the safe, happy retreat it used to be. Now Steve’s ghost echoes around every corner. Danny would gladly share his meager hoard of toilet paper if Steve would just come back.

Steve has kept his promise to Danny to keep in touch, although only barely. Still, he lets him know daily that he’s alive, and at this point, that has to be enough.

Danny and Grace talk for a few more minutes, then Danny tells Grace he needs to do some paperwork, and they sign off. He closes the laptop and pulls out his phone, typing out a variation on the same message he sends every night.

_Love you, babe. Stay safe. Goodnight._

A few minutes later, Danny gets a response, and he can breathe again for another day.

_Love you too, Danno._

**Author's Note:**

> Stay safe, everyone.


End file.
